The Paradise Trail
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Product Description
Howard Marks, Guardian
'The dialogue is the wittiest I have read in any work of fiction, including Catch 22. I can't recommend it highly enough'
Jake Arnott
'An exhilarating trip - compelling, exuberant, hilarious and moving. The great beach read with a conscience'
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
This debut novel is a blend of murder mystery and a memoir to a lost era. It begins in the Lux Hotel - a backpackers' insect-ridden hostel in Calcutta in 1971 where the usual odd bunch of hippy characters have ended up after time spent in Goa, Delhi, Nepal, Kabul etc. There is weird Freddie who communicates in Bob Dylan lyrics, Larry, an American who makes a little on the side by drug smuggling and Gordon, an ex-advertising executive who has "dropped out" and two oddball Australians, Karen and Keiran. The hotel is run by young Anand, a kindly and liberal Indian. The Bengali war of independence is just beginning so into this mix come Hugh, a British would-be war correspondent and Britt, a beautiful and ambitious American photographer.
Some nasty murders happen and it is believed that there could be a serial killer who is after hippies..... But in the chaos of the end of the Indian-Pakistan fighting no culprit is found. The members of the group go their own ways and over the next thirty years have little contact with each other. But the daughter of one of the victims determines to find out how her father met his death and so the mystery of what actually happened in Calcutta is gradually unravelled.
This is a brilliant read. The description of the drug-fuelled hippy trail seems very real and the main characters are three dimensional and believable. There are no real heroes - just a series of flawed characters like in real life. The thirty year gap in the narrative is covered by a series of news reports, letters, postcards, press announcements and emails. There is a great piece of writing when Gordon agrees to take part in a cricket match in Calcutta even though he hasn't played in years. He uses various strands of eastern philosophy that he has learned on the road to help him to bowl. Very comical (but it works!)
This is a fun book but with some dark undertones of cultural imperialism, racism and egotism. One of the blurbs on the cover says: "A great beach read". Yes, OK, The Paradise Trail would make a super beach read - but it's better than that so don't wait to be on holiday to read it! Highly recommended.
(And if you want to know more about the Bengali War of Independence read A Golden Age by Tahmima Anam)
Some nasty murders happen and it is believed that there could be a serial killer who is after hippies..... But in the chaos of the end of the Indian-Pakistan fighting no culprit is found. The members of the group go their own ways and over the next thirty years have little contact with each other. But the daughter of one of the victims determines to find out how her father met his death and so the mystery of what actually happened in Calcutta is gradually unravelled.
This is a brilliant read. The description of the drug-fuelled hippy trail seems very real and the main characters are three dimensional and believable. There are no real heroes - just a series of flawed characters like in real life. The thirty year gap in the narrative is covered by a series of news reports, letters, postcards, press announcements and emails. There is a great piece of writing when Gordon agrees to take part in a cricket match in Calcutta even though he hasn't played in years. He uses various strands of eastern philosophy that he has learned on the road to help him to bowl. Very comical (but it works!)
This is a fun book but with some dark undertones of cultural imperialism, racism and egotism. One of the blurbs on the cover says: "A great beach read". Yes, OK, The Paradise Trail would make a super beach read - but it's better than that so don't wait to be on holiday to read it! Highly recommended.
(And if you want to know more about the Bengali War of Independence read A Golden Age by Tahmima Anam)
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This fiction debut from long-time Guardian correspondent Campbell recretes the era impressively - both the ferocity of its conflict and the drug induced languor of its hippies.
TIME OUT
TIME OUT
6 of 9 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This is the story of Duncan Campbell's return to India, after more than a 35 year break. His narrative is superb (you can tell he's a journalist;) Duncan recounts his sadness at returning to Goa, and seeing the psycological and ecological destruction that mass tourism brings.
I knew Duncan in London in 1969 and then again in 1974 but never saw him again. I am really happy with his tales of India and am so glad that he has written this book.
Anyone who was On the Road in the early 1970's will relate to this book, as it has common threads that we all experienced in the strangeness and naivety of that time, the time when we all really grew up and became international citizens, instead of just 'Brits Abroad.'
'On the Road' for us was a daily reality, not an attitude or a state of mind like is so often perceived in this day and age.
Package Holidays were in their infancy in the early '70's and it never ceases to amaze me how the whole package industry attempts to pre-package even the smallest daily details of the overseas holiday experience for many of it's clients. Not to mention the skimming that goes on. I recently met a British couple in Luxor who were on a Nile Cruise - big ship - 500 passengers. At their introduction on arrival they were all told not to tip the staff on the ship and each asked to pay £25 in advance for tips during their 5 day journey. Imagine how much money that is and how much of it will the staff receive?
How do I know that tomorrow or in 3 days time - whether I will need to ask a staff member for a beach towel or a cup of coffee? How many people really enjoy living their holiday on this abhorent level? Do we REALLY need to live all of our lives in advance?
Not so with this book - it is a completely fresh read and gives insight into the independent travelling of long ago - like the times when everyone on an aircraft would talk with you because we were all on a shared experience, the time has passed, however, and hardly anyone talks with anyone on a plane anymore.
This book is a must-have for those of us who were there and for those of us who wish we were old enough, or brave enough to have been there. Highly recommended book.
I knew Duncan in London in 1969 and then again in 1974 but never saw him again. I am really happy with his tales of India and am so glad that he has written this book.
Anyone who was On the Road in the early 1970's will relate to this book, as it has common threads that we all experienced in the strangeness and naivety of that time, the time when we all really grew up and became international citizens, instead of just 'Brits Abroad.'
'On the Road' for us was a daily reality, not an attitude or a state of mind like is so often perceived in this day and age.
Package Holidays were in their infancy in the early '70's and it never ceases to amaze me how the whole package industry attempts to pre-package even the smallest daily details of the overseas holiday experience for many of it's clients. Not to mention the skimming that goes on. I recently met a British couple in Luxor who were on a Nile Cruise - big ship - 500 passengers. At their introduction on arrival they were all told not to tip the staff on the ship and each asked to pay £25 in advance for tips during their 5 day journey. Imagine how much money that is and how much of it will the staff receive?
How do I know that tomorrow or in 3 days time - whether I will need to ask a staff member for a beach towel or a cup of coffee? How many people really enjoy living their holiday on this abhorent level? Do we REALLY need to live all of our lives in advance?
Not so with this book - it is a completely fresh read and gives insight into the independent travelling of long ago - like the times when everyone on an aircraft would talk with you because we were all on a shared experience, the time has passed, however, and hardly anyone talks with anyone on a plane anymore.
This book is a must-have for those of us who were there and for those of us who wish we were old enough, or brave enough to have been there. Highly recommended book.
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